Shipping container for mirrors and the like



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United States atent O SHIPPING CONTAINER FOR MIRRORS AND THE LIKE Malcom H. Wilson, St. Louis, Mo.

Application March 10, 1954, Serial No. 415,317

1 Claim. (Cl. 206-62) The invention relates to containers particularly adapted for use and reuse in shipping mirrors or the like devices which must be held under rm pressure against undesirable play during shipment. The invention is particularly adapted for use by moving and storage companics and consists in a container into which flat bjects of different widths and lengths may be placed, one on top of the other, with suitable packing between them, and securely held in place by a readily applicable and removable holddown member.

In the accompanying drawings illustrating a selected embodiment of the invention,

Figure 1 is a top view of a container.

Figure 2 is a side elevation and vertical section taken on the line 2 2 of Figure 1.

Figure 3 is a vertical transverse section taken on the line 3-3 of Figure 1.

The container includes upright side and end walls 1, preferably of steel plates, a wood or plywood bottom 2, upright partitions 3, adjacent but spaced from opposite side walls 1, and provided with a plurality of spaced slots 4 extending downwardly from the upper edges of the partitions. Partitions 3 may be of steel or other sheet metal and are ixed in relation to the remainder of the container, as by having their lower ends ilanged at 5 and bolted to the container bottom wall 2 and inturned flanges 6 on side walls 1.

Extending across the container between opposite parttions 3 are a plurality of holddowns 7, each formed preferably of metal and being of channel cross section and having closed ends 8, disposed to abut against partitions 3. A bolt or stud 9 extends through each end of each holddown and through a selected slot 4 in the adjacent partition and is provided with a nut 10, whereby the partition and the end of the holddown may be clamped together.

With this arrangement, a plurality of mirrors M or the like may be placed one above the other, preferably with layers of packing material P between them. A selected number of holddowns 7 may be placed on top of the 2,822,921 Patented Feb. 11, 1958 mirrors with their bolts 9 inserted in corresponding slots 4 and tightened to secure the mirrors in rm relation to each other. The container may then be upended and shifted with minimum likelihood of injury to its contents.

Preferably the upper end of each side is anged inwardly, as indicated at 11, to overlie the upper edge of the adjacent partition 3 and prevent deformation or other injury to the latter when the container is not in use. A cover plate 12 may be secured by bolts 13 to inturned anges 11.

The mirror-like articles are readily packed and removed at the beginning and end yof a shipment and are securely held in place irrespective of the size or number of the articles.

The details of the construction may be varied without departing from the spirit of the invention and the exclusive use of those modifications coming Within the scope of the claim is contemplated.

What is claimed is:

A shipping container of the class described comprising a rigid box-like structure having a bottom wall and spaced apart upright walls, uprights secured to said bottom wall and spaced a short distance inwardly of the container from said upright walls and extending substantially throughout the length of said upright walls and each provided with vertically disposed continuous slots at intervals throughout its length extending downwardly from the upper edge of the upright, separate, spaced apart, narrow holddown members extending between said uprights and each having end elements movable vertically along the uprights abreast of a corresponding pair of slots, there being a bolt extending through each end element of each holddown member and through the corresponding upright slot with its head slidable along the outer face of the upright and having a nut engaging the inner face of the holddown element and accessible to the users hand when inwardly of the box-like structure from the upright for clamping the corresponding end of the holddown member to the opposing upright at any selected height along the slot and independently of the other holddown members and their clamping bolts.

References Cited in the le of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 272,961 Hudson Feb. 27, 1883 341,604 Rice May 11, 1886 702,518 Willon June 17, 1902 970,680 Burkhardt Sept. 20, 1910 1,700,577 Wilhelm Ian. 29, 1929 1,913,021 Butterick lune 6, 1933 FOREIGN PATENTS 109.130 Switzerland Mar. 2, 1925 

